Toby didn’t answer that. Instead, he asked, “Are you at the company now?”
“Yes.” Tina nodded. “I’m at the lobby.”
Toby massaged his forehead. “I see. We can talk after the meeting’s done, so wait for me there.” With that, he ended the call.
Tina stomped her foot angrily. He hung up on me! That’s the first time he did that.
After Toby came back into the conference room, everyone stopped gossiping. Toby’s face fell, and when he realized Sonia was smirking at him, he knew everyone was talking about him in his absence. “Let’s resume the meeting,” he said darkly.
The meeting lasted for more than an hour, but eventually, it came to an end.
Everyone started filing out, and Sonia was the last one to go, as usual. Before she could get out, Toby stopped her. “A minute, please.”
“Yes, Mr. Fuller?” Sonia stopped.
Toby handed a file to her.
“And this is?” She took it from him, though she was curious about the content.
“Titus’ proposal. The one Tina switched. I thought it was yours, so I added a lot of suggestions. You can take a look. It’ll help with the project,” he explained calmly.
Sonia opened the file and saw the suggestions written in red. She looked at them for a few moments and closed the file. “Why’d you do this for me, Mr. Fuller?” She looked at him curiously.
Nobody knew the proposal was Titus’, so everyone thought it was hers. Why’d he make so many suggestions? Won’t it waste his time? There was no need for that. The amount of suggestions alone was enough to show how rubbish the proposal was. He could have just tossed it in the bin and called it a day. So why did he help me out? Weird.
Toby was surprised she’d ask that, so he looked downward to hide that look in his eyes. “I helped everyone, not just you.”
“I see.” Sonia nodded, obviously believing that excuse. He doesn’t like me, so there’s no point in specially helping me out. “I see. I’ll take your suggestions into account. Thank you.” She bowed to him.
“Sure. Don’t be late for the signing tomorrow.”
“I won’t. Goodbye now.” Sonia gave him a polite smile before leaving the room.
Toby raised his hand while he watched her back, as if he wanted to stop her from leaving, but in the end, he gave up.
“Mr. Fuller.” Tom came in a moment after that.
Toby put his hand in his pocket. “What’s the matter?”
“Dr. Steve is on his way here,” Tom answered.
Toby’s eyes glinted with excitement, but only for a moment. “I see. Is his clinic prepared?”
“Yes. Done according to his demands. He can open up the clinic right after he lands,” Tom answered.
Toby raised his chin. “Let’s go back to the company.”
“Alright.” Tom nodded.
A short while later, Toby and Tom came back to Fuller Group.
Tina saw them the moment they came into the lobby, so she shot up and trotted toward Toby. “Toby!” She went up to him and gave him a tight hug.
The people around them gave her envious, jealous looks. If it was in the past, Toby wouldn’t care how everyone looked at them. However, for some reason, now he didn’t want them to think he was dating Tina. “Alright, Tina. Calm down.” A frown creased Toby’s forehead, then he pulled Tina away from him.
After Tina stood up, she looked at him with tearful eyes. “Toby, I—”
“We’ll talk in the office.” Toby went to the elevator after telling her that.
Tina was angry that Toby didn’t wait for her. She clenched her fists, but she followed him quickly.
They came to the office a short while later. After coming in, Tina continued with what she wanted to say earlier. “I know you’re still mad at me, Toby, but I didn’t know I switched Miss Reed’s proposal out. I have no recollection of it. I was confused when my dad told me about it.”
Toby turned around. “You don’t know?”
“Yes, I didn’t. I think my alter ego did it.” Tina stared down at the ground.
Toby gazed at her quizzically. “But she only appears when she’s triggered. You were alone in that room. Tell me, Tina. How were you triggered then?”
“I wasn’t triggered in the room. I-I saw Miss Reed downstairs when I came here to hand the proposal in.” Tina looked up.
That caught Toby by surprise. “You saw Sonia?”
“Yes. She was leaving the company. Her visit triggered me, since you guys are already divorced. Maybe that’s when my alter ego took over.” Tina started trailing off at the end, and she sobbed.
Toby sighed. “Forget it. That’s the end of this matter. Your father has apologized, and I told everyone you can’t come up without permission. It’s enough punishment.”
Tina bit her lip. “Must you do that, Toby? Can’t you change it?”
“No. Now that Sonia’s our partner, she’s going to come to the company a lot. If I don’t do this, you’re bound to bump into her and get triggered a lot. End of discussion,” Toby answered adamantly.
That answer didn’t sit well with her, but she couldn’t do anything, so she nodded. “I see. But did my dad really lose the deal?”
“His proposal leaves a lot to be desired, so yes,” Toby answered coolly.
“B-But he’s my father. Can’t you—”
“No!” Toby interrupted her.
Tina’s face fell.
“Tina, I know what you want to say.” He looked at Tina. “You want me to give him a chance for your sake, but you have to know that this bid is fair play. I made that announcement myself. There’ll be no inside man, no cheating. If I break that rule, my reputation will be scarred.”
“I understand. Sorry, Toby. I won’t do it again.” Tina stared down, crestfallen.
Toby gave her a hug. “Good to hear. I’ll give him some privileges on other projects, so don’t worry.”
“Thank you, Toby. You’re the best.” She stood on tiptoe and kissed him happily.
The kiss made him frown by reflex. The moment Tina stared down, he quickly wiped his cheek. After that, he said, “Tina, do you remember what I told you back at Alaric’s villa? About the psychologist?”
“Yes.” She nodded.
“Good. Dr. Steve is on the way as we speak. He’ll be here by tomorrow. I’ll take you to him then,” Toby said.
The news surprised her, and she started panicking. “You found a psychologist? Already?”
“Yes,” he answered.
Toby’s reply stoked her flame of fury, but she took a deep breath to hold it down. Once she had calmed down, she stared at him, slightly upset. “When did you find this psychologist? Why didn’t you tell me?”
Tina’s growing nervousness didn’t escape Toby, which made him narrow his eyes. “I told Tom the day after you said you’d see a psychologist. You seem to be afraid of the psychologist.”
